Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Anas acuta, Canon 50D, female Northern Pintail, Huntley Meadows Park, Northern Pintail, Northern Pintail Duck, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on January 20, 2016| 5 Comments »
Male birds generally have brighter colors and more distinctive patterns than their female counterparts and therefore tend to get a lot more attention from photographers. The females, though, have a beauty and elegance that often equals or surpasses that of the males, like this female Northern Pintail (Anas acuta) that I spotted earlier this month at Huntley Meadows Park in Alexandria, Virginia.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Canon 70-300mm telephoto zoom lens, Huntley Meadows Park, Melospiza melodia, song sparrow, sparrow on January 19, 2016| 9 Comments »
How do birds manage to survive when it is so cold outside? I asked myself that question early yesterday morning as I walked along the exposed boardwalk at Huntley Meadows Park. The wind was blowing hard and the temperature was about 20 degrees F (minus 7 degrees C).
The landscape was empty and desolate and seemed to have little to offer as potential sources of food. Suddenly I noticed a small group of sparrows. They would fly to a spot together and then individually forage among the dried out plants, including those sticking out of the ice. After a short period of frenetic activity, they would move on to another spot.
Initially, I knelt and tried to get some shots of the sparrows that were standing on the ice and reaching up into the vegetation. A bit later, I was able to capture some images of a sparrow perched on some plants in a more exposed position.
I am not really sure what kind of sparrows these are. Earlier in the day I saw some sparrows that I could identify as White-throated Sparrows, but these birds seem to have a different set of markings. After looking at my guidebooks, I have concluded that these may be Song Sparrows (Melospiza melodia) and would welcome comments from more experienced birders on the identification, especially if I have misidentified the birds.
How do these little birds survive during the winter? From what I can see, they do their part by working hard as they forage for food and God provides for their needs.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Canon 70-300mm telephoto zoom lens, Huntley Meadows Park, ice, sparrow on January 18, 2016| 5 Comments »
Early this morning, it was really cold and windy and most of the birds and animals showed great common sense in staying in sheltered spots. This little sparrow, however, seemed to be having a good time hopping, skipping, and skating across the frozen pond.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in animals, Photography, Portraits, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50mm, Guinea pig, Tamron 150-600mm, Tamron 180mm on January 17, 2016| 6 Comments »
What lenses do you generally carry with you when you go out to shoot wildlife? This past year I have kept my Tamron 150-600mm lens on my camera the majority of the time and sometimes switch to my Tamron 180mm macro lens. The third lens that I have with me generally is a Canon 50mm lens that I use only occasionally.
While I was going to be away in Vienna, I decided to lend my long lens to a friend. We got into a conversation about the lens when I delivered it to him and I noted that one of th disadvantages of the Tamron zoom was that it is slow, with a maximum aperture of f/6.3 when extended to 600mm.
I contrasted the speed of the long lens with that of my “nifty fifty” that has a maximum aperture of f/1.8. In order to demonstrate how much more light I could get at f/1.8, I had him hold a couple of his guinea pigs and I took some portrait shots handheld in the limited available indoor light with the lens wide open. With a human subject, I would probably have been uncomfortably close, but the guinea pigs didn’t seem to mind.
Finally I took a few shots using the 180mm wide open at f/3.5. It was quite a bit harder to frame the squirming guinea pig at the greater distance, but I got a few shots that look almost like I used studio lighting.
I think my friend learned a bit more about the lenses (and I ended up lending him the 50mm lens too) and I rediscovered the joy of switching lenses and zooming with my feet.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Downy Woodpecker, Huntley Meadows Park, male Downy Woodpecker, Picoides pubescens, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on January 10, 2016| 11 Comments »
If I were a woodpecker, I think that I would want to be a Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens). These energetic little birds will sometimes peck away at the relatively soft stalks of reeds and cattails, rather than at the harder tree trunks of full-sized trees.
I recently captured some shots of a Downy Woodpecker in action. I was amazed that it was able to peck away at the stalk on which it was perched without losing its balance or knocking itself off of the perch. Of course, its vigorous movements made it a bit difficult to photograph, but I was persistent and managed to get some decent shots.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Landscape, Nature, Photography, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, ice, mist, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto, winter landscape on January 9, 2016| 16 Comments »
After several days of frigid temperatures, ice formed on the ponds at Huntley Meadows Park. Yesterday morning, it was finally above freezing and mist was rising from the ice, joining the low-hanging fog.
The sunlight was not strong enough to pierce the thick gray clouds and the winter landscape was almost monochromatic, filled with a sense of bleakness and desolation.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Art, Landscape, Nature, Photography, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Anas platyrhynchos, Branta canadensis, Canada Goose, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, mallard, mallard duck, reflections, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto, winter on January 8, 2016| 8 Comments »
Some mornings when I am out with my camera at Huntley Meadows Park, I am simply entranced by the colors, shapes, and patterns of the reflections of the trees in the water. For extended periods of time I will become lost in the ever changing abstract world of reflected beauty.
Any wildlife that happens to come into the frame is a bonus.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Anas acuta, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, male Northern Pintail, Northern Pintail, Northern Pintail Duck, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on January 7, 2016| 15 Comments »
One of my favorite winter ducks at Huntley Meadows Park is the male Northern Pintail (Anas acuta). Its elegant long neck and refined colors give it an almost aristocratic look.
The duck in the photo looks a little less dignified when grooming himself (don’t we all), but I really like the way that this image provides a glimpse of its personality. In the second image, you can get a sense of the length of the pintail’s neck and its startling brightness (and its regal posture). The final shot gives you an idea of the flexibility of that long neck—I think I have less than half of that range of motion in my neck.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Dragonflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Autumn Meadowhawk, Autumn Meadowhawk dragonfly, Huntley Meadows Park, Sympetrum vicinum, Walter Sanford on January 6, 2016| 4 Comments »
Fellow dragonfly enthusiast Walter Sanford managed to spot a dragonfly in January in Northern Virginia. Wow!
Be sure to check out his blog for more facts and photos about dragonflies, damselflies, and other little creatures.
A single Autumn Meadowhawk dragonfly (Sympetrum vicinum), jokingly referred to as a “Winter Meadowhawk dragonfly” in a recent post, was observed on 03 January 2016 near the terminus of the Hike-Bike Trail at Huntley Meadows Park. This sighting sets a new late-date for this species for both Huntley Meadows Park (formerly 27 December) and the Commonwealth of Virginia (formerly 01 January).
03 JAN 2016 | Huntley Meadows Park | Autumn Meadowhawk (female)
This individual is a female, as indicated by her coloration, shape of the abdomen, and terminal appendages.
03 JAN 2016 | Huntley Meadows Park | Autumn Meadowhawk (female)
The following graphic image shows the current air temperature in the central wetland area around the time when I spotted the record-setting dragonfly. 51°F is nearly 20 degrees less than 70°F, widely believed to be the minimum body temperature necessary for dragonfly flight!
03 JAN 2016…
View original post 280 more words
Posted in Flowers, Photography, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Galanthus, green spring gardens, snowdrop, Tamron 180mm macro lens on January 6, 2016| 1 Comment »
There is not much blooming during the frigid days of early January, so I was very happy to come across a small patch of Snowdrops (g. Galanthus) during a quick visit to Green Spring Gardens this past weekend. There is nothing complicated or showy about these small flowers and I find true beauty in their simplicity.
I somehow always feel like bursting into the words of the song Edelweiss from The Sound of Music whenever I see snowdrops:
“Small and white
Clean and bright
You look happy to meet me.
Blossom of snow
May you bloom and grow
Bloom and grow forever.”
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Buteo lineatus, Canon 50D, hawk, Huntley Meadows Park, Red-Shouldered Hawk, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on January 5, 2016| 12 Comments »
I got excited yesterday morning when I spotted a hawk perched high in a tree at my favorite marshland park. The light was coming from a good direction and I was able to identify it as a Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus).
Frequently the hawks I see will sit in the same position for a long, long time, but this one kept changing positions. Maybe the branch was not comfortable or maybe the wind was bothersome. Whatever the case, I was able to have a miniature portrait session with the hawk as I tried to capture its best side.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, green spring gardens, Mimus polyglottos, mockingbird, Northern Mockingbird, Tamron 180mm macro lens on January 4, 2016| 17 Comments »
Yesterday I made a trip to Green Spring Gardens and found, not surprisingly, that not much was in bloom. I used to visit this county-run historical garden often, but it’s been a while since I was there last.
While I was there I spotted this beautiful little Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) perched inside of a bush. I am not sure what kind of a bush it is, but the bright red berries add a festive touch to the scene.
I’m still celebrating the twelve days of Christmas, culminating on January 6 with Three Kings Day (Epiphany). Radio stations, alas, seem to have moved on, so I have to sing Christmas carols a cappella when I am in the car (or even at home).
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Downy Woodpecker, Huntley Meadows Park, male Downy Woodpecker, Picoides pubescens, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on January 3, 2016| 4 Comments »
How focused are you as you begin 2016? This little male Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens) seemed to be totally focused as he foraged for food yesterday in the vegetation of Huntley Meadows Park.
As for me, I’m easing my way into the new year and have not yet thought seriously about goals and plans and certainly have not made (or broken) any resolutions.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Agelaius phoeniceus, Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, female Red-winged Blackbird, Huntley Meadows Park, new year, red-winged blackbird, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on December 31, 2015| 8 Comments »
How do you celebrate the end of the year? Do you like to go out with a bang, with a big celebration and literal or figurative fireworks, or are you more pensive and reflective? I know that I am in the latter group.
My life this past year, both personally and as a photographer, has had some high points, but mostly it has been a year in which I have tried to find beauty and meaning in ordinary things. I have visited my favorite park over and over again, photographing some of the same species repeatedly. Patience and persistence have been my hallmarks and I have been rewarded with some wonderful photographic opportunities.
Somehow it seems appropriate that I end this year with a couple of images of this beautiful female Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) that I spotted in the cattails on Monday at Huntley Meadows Park. Red-winged Blackbirds are with us most of the year. They seem to come and go, but they are often there. The females are usually buried deep in the underbrush and are not seen as often as the more flashy and loud males. As you can see from these photos, however, the females are at least as beautiful as the males.
The blackbird’s body positions serve as a visual metaphors for my approach as I look forward to 2016—hanging on and occasionally looking back, but primarily looking forward with optimism to the future.
Best wishes to all for a wonderful 2016.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, fox, Huntley Meadows Park, photo contest, red fox, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto, Vulpes vulpes on December 30, 2015| 21 Comments »
Last week I conducted a poll to see which of my four recent photo contest entries was your favorite image and the fox came out on top with 43 percent, followed by the bluebird (28 %), the eagle 18 %), and the dragonfly (11 %). Thanks to all of you who voted and especially to those who left comments about your choice. I was intrigued, but not surprised, by the fact that the favorite of the readers—the fox— was different from the choice of the contest judge—the dragonfly.
Several readers commented, however, that the particular image of the Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) that I used was not their favorite one. I had previously done three postings from the magical encounter with the fox and one of the other shots seemed to speak to some readers more than the one I submitted for the contest.
So I am seeking your views again by reprising all of the fox photos and asking you to vote for your favorite. Do you prefer the fox standing up or leaning over the water? Do you like it more when the fox is looking directly at you or at an angle? Does it make a difference if the fox’s bushy tail is visible? I realize that it may not be easy to narrow your choice down to a single image, so I have tried to set up the poll to permit multiple choices.
If I have set this up correctly, you can click on any image and scroll through each of them in full size. After viewing them all, select your favorite (or favorites) and register your vote. I’d be really happy if you left a few words about your choice. NOTE: If you open the posting in Reader, you may need to click on the Title to get to the poll and to actual posting in which you can scroll through the photos in larger size as a kind of slide show.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, archery, Canon 50D, deer hunting, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on December 29, 2015| 9 Comments »
“You better watch out…”
Kids are warned to be good “for goodness sake,” because Santa is coming to town. Well, Santa has come and gone, but it is prudent to remain good and cautious at Huntley Meadows Park, where I saw this camouflaged archer in a tree yesterday morning.
Each year I have seen the posted signs indicating that deer hunting will be taking place during the fall and winter. I have seen a few empty tree stands, but until yesterday, I had never seen an archer. Fortunately I was behind him when I spotted him and it is obvious from the photo that he had spotted me too and even gave me a little wave of the hand. I passed by as quickly and quietly as I could.
Within a few minutes of spotting the hunter, I came upon two unoccupied tree stands. I guess that I am walking around in a favorite area for the deer hunters.
That means I need to be a bit more diligent in wearing my brightly colored stocking hats and remaining alert. I better watch out.
Unoccupied tree stand #1
Unoccupied tree stand #2
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Bald Eagle, birds in flight, Canon 50D, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on December 28, 2015| 6 Comments »
Clouds can be a mixed blessing. Clouds can help diffuse the sunlight and eliminate harsh highlights. However, when the skies are as heavily overcast as they were for most of this past weekend, they can block so much light that details are hidden and contrast is really soft.
When I saw a bird with a large wingspan take flight in the distance, I readied myself. I wasn’t sure if it was a hawk, a vulture, or an eagle (or possibly even a heron), but I will generally try to get shots of any large bird I see in the sky. As I tracked the bird and took some shots, I still couldn’t positively identify the bird, but my hopes rose in anticipation that it might be a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus).
Bald Eagles are one of the few species that I will try to photograph every single time that I manage to spot one. I did get some shots of what turned out in fact to be a Bald Eagle. They are recognizable, though the poor lighting conditions made it impossible to capture the details of its feathers. Usually I worry about blowing out the highlights of the eagle’s white head—that was not a problem this time.
I’ve had a pretty good year spotting eagles and suspect this might be the last one that I see in 2015, though I am heading out in a little while and am eternally hopeful that I will spot another one. As with many other photographic subjects, I hope in the coming year to get even better images of eagles, one of my favorite (and most challenging) subjects.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, beaver, Canon 50D, Castor canadensis, Huntley Meadows Park, North American Beaver, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on December 27, 2015| 10 Comments »
It was almost dark yesterday (and getting darker) at Huntley Meadows Park when I saw the head of a beaver break the surface of the water. It’s been quite some time since I last saw a beaver, so I was thrilled, and even managed to get a few shots by cranking up the settings on my camera.
There are several beaver lodges at the park and the resident North American Beavers (Castor canadensis) have been really busy the last few months getting ready for winter. Every time that I visit the park, I see that that more mud has been applied to the lodges and the brush pile adjacent to the lodges, which server as a larder during the winter, keep getting bigger.
Despite all of this activity, the beavers have remained remarkably elusive and I have not spotted them a single time in recent months during my early morning visits to the park. Yesterday I went to the park late in the day and was able to finally see one.
My DSLR is a little long in the tooth and its max ISO setting is 3200. I had never set it that high, because of fears of unacceptable grain in the images, but boldly set it there yesterday. I was shooting in aperture priority at f/7.1 (wide open for my telephoto lens when fully extended is f/6.3) and I was shocked to see that my shutter speeds for my shots were either 1/4 or 1/8 of a second. Fortunately my lens has image stabilization, but it’s actually a little surprising that my images were not completely blurry when shooting at 600mm with a 1/8 second shutter speed.
This shooting situation definitely pushed the limits of my camera, but I am happy that I was able to get some recognizable images of a beaver swimming at dusk. As we move deeper into the winter, I will be looking to capture some more shots of our resident beavers, hopefully in better light.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Christmas, Nature, Photography, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Cardinalis cardinalis, Christmas 2015, Huntley Meadows Park, male Northern Cardinal, Northern cardinal, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on December 25, 2015| 8 Comments »
It has been cloudy and rainy almost all of today and I feel a need for some bright colors. Here’s a shot from last December of a male Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) decked out in Christmas red.
Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in animals, Christmas, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, canon 70-300mm telephoto zoom, Christmas 2015, fox, huntley meadows, red fox, Vulpes vulpes on December 25, 2015| 5 Comments »
I’m dreaming of a white Christmas, but it looks like it won’t happen here this year, with a high temperature for today forecast to reach 70 degrees (21 degrees C).
So I decided to reprise a more seasonally appropriate shot from a couple of years ago at Huntley Meadows Park. In early January 2014 I spotted this Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) circling around a beaver pond, not far from where I took my most recent fox shots.
Merry Christmas to all of my friends here who support and encourage me on my journey into photography and best wishes to you and your families as we move toward the start of a new year.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in animals, Birds, Dragonflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Bald Eagle, Blue-faced Meadowhawk, Canon 50D, Canon 70-300mm telephoto zoom lens, Eastern Bluebird, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Huntley Meadows Park, red fox, Sialia sialis, Sympetrum ambiguum, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto, Tamron 180mm macro lens, Vulpes vulpes on December 24, 2015| 29 Comments »
As many of you know, I recently entered some photos in a local photo competition and was fortunate to be awarded second place for one of them. I was a little surprised by the one that was selected, because, quite frankly, it was not my favorite one of the group.
The more that I though about it, the more I realized how difficult it must be to be a judge, especially in an area like photography in which there is both a technical and an artistic component.
Why do we like what we like?
I’ve never used a poll in a posting before, but thought that in this case it might be interesting to learn which one of my four entries is your favorite. I am not really asking you to judge which one is “best,” but am looking more for a sense of which one you like most. You can use whatever criteria you like and I would be thrilled if you gave a few words about your choice.
As you can see, I chose a diverse set of subjects to appeal to a variety of tastes. There are two birds—a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) and an Eastern Bluebird (Sialia sialis); one insect—a Blue-faced Meadowhawk dragonfly (Sympetrum ambiguum); and one mammal—a Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes).
If I have set this up correctly, you can click on any image and scroll through each of them in full size. After viewing them all, select your favorite and register your vote. As I mentioned earlier, I’d be really happy if you left a few words about your choice. (I think the poll might let you vote multiple times if you have trouble choosing, but am not 100 percent certain, given that I am not familiar with the polling component.) NOTE: If you open the posting in Reader, you may need to click on the Title to get to the actual posting and to the poll.
Thanks. Merry Christmas in advance for those celebrating Christmas and best wishes as we move toward the start of a new year.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Landscape, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Anas clypeata, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, Northern Shoveler, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on December 23, 2015| 2 Comments »
For a few magical moments, the early morning sky was awash with delicate shades of pink and blue. I hurriedly tried to capture that ephemeral beauty. Then suddenly the color was gone.
Yet somehow the magic remained. There is something really special about taking photos just after dawn—the colors are rich and saturated and the water is often incredibly still.
I captured this tranquil moment with a male Northern Shoveler (Anas clypeata) early on Monday at Huntley Meadows Park. at about 7:30, not long after the color had faded away.
I love the stillness of the early morning.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Bald Eagle, birds in flight, Canon 50D, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron, winter solstice on December 22, 2015| 9 Comments »
The sky was overcast yesterday morning, the day of the Winter Solstice, but my spirits soared when I caught sight of a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) high in the air over Huntley Meadows Park.
I was thrilled to be able to capture a sequence of shots that shows the eagle initially coming right at me and then gradually circling to a position that gave me a side view.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Blue-faced Meadowhawk, Blue-faced Meadowhawk dragonfly, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, Sympetrum ambiguum, Tamron 180mm macro lens on December 21, 2015| 32 Comments »
Do you enter photo contests? I like to say that I shoot for myself, but I suspect that is not the whole truth. I know that I also derive pleasure from sharing my thoughts and my images with others. There is something really gratifying and uplifting about feedback that suggests that I have touched someone else in some small way, that I have caused them to stop for a moment to consider the beauty that surrounds us.
Several months ago I saw a notice that the Friends of Huntley Meadows Park organization was sponsoring a photo competition. Regular readers of this blog know that Huntley Meadows Park, a Fairfax County-run marshland area, has become my favorite place to photograph a wide variety of wildlife subjects and I post my photos regularly to a Facebook page for the park. The only stipulation for this contest was that the photos had to have been taken at the park.
Sure, I have taken a lot of photos in the park, but were they good enough? I had never before entered a photo competition, and I guess I sometimes feel a little insecure about my photography. The competition required me to submit matted prints and I hadn’t for the most part seen my work in printed form.
I decided that if there were ever a competition ideally suited for me, this was the one. My mentor, friend, and fellow photographer Cindy Dyer helped me to prepare my prints. I submitted four prints, the maximum number that I was permitted to enter. (I’ll probably do a post soon with the four entries, so that you can decide which one you like best.)
A reception was held last week to open the photo exhibition and announce the winners. I was in Vienna at the time, so I learned from a friend that I took second place in the competition with a macro shot of a Blue-faced Meadowhawk dragonfly (Sympetrum ambiguum) that I titled “Baby’s Got Blue Eyes.”
One of the coolest parts of the competition is that the judge shared his/her comments about the winning entries, including the following assessment of my image (check out the Facebook page of the Friends of Huntley Meadows Park for more details on the competition):
“The contrast of colors is stunning, with the iridescent blues, greens, and reds of the dragonfly beautifully contrasted with the earth-tone browns and grays of the leaves behind. The use of narrow focus of this macro photo is done perfectly, bringing the eye and wing of the dragonfly into sharp focus that stands out from the pleasantly soft focus background. It gives the photo a great three dimensional effect. The composition is also compelling.”
Wow! I was worried when I heard that we probably had only a single judge for the contest, but if that was indeed the case, the judge really “got” what I was trying to achieve with the image. In some ways, I was surprised at the result. Insects have a kind of niche audience—some people just don’t like insects—and macro subjects sometimes have trouble competing head-to-head with stop-action wildlife shots.
My biggest takeaway from this competition, though, has nothing to do with the competition itself. I’ve learned that there is something really special about seeing my photos printed. The images look good on the computer screen, but it is much more exciting to be able to show someone a print, knowing that I have created that image.
As I think about this coming year, I see myself having a whole lot more of my images printed and maybe even having to courage to enter additional contests.
Baby’s Got Blue Eyes
At the exhibition. (Photo by Cindy Dyer)
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Art, Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Bombycilla cedrorum, Canon 50D, Cedar Waxwing, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on December 20, 2015| 12 Comments »
As I was trekking about at Huntley Meadows Park on Saturday, I was thrilled to spot this Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum), a species that don’t see very often at the park. Normally when I do see one, it is buried in the branches or is far away, but this bird posed for a moment on a branch and I was able to get an unobstructed shot of it. The Cedar Waxwing was in the shade, but its silhouette is unmistakable and I could identify it immediately.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Anas clypeata, birds in flight, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, Northern Shoveler, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on December 19, 2015| 9 Comments »
After a week and a half overseas in an urban environment, it was nice Friday to get back to the wildlife of Huntley Meadows Park, where I saw this Northern Shoveler couple preparing to make a landing.
I accidentally spooked the Northern Shovelers (Anas clypeata) when I was approaching the area in which they were foraging for food. I first caught sight of them when they took to the air. Although they flew only a short distance away, I was able to react quickly enough to track them and get a few in-flight shots that show their beautiful coloration.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, Melanerpes erythrocephalus, Red-headed Woodpecker, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on December 13, 2015| 3 Comments »
Woodpeckers are so energetic that it is rare for me to spot one that is not in constant motion. Recently, however, I was fortunate to spot a Red-headed Woodpecker (Melanerpes erythrocephalus) that seemed to be taking a break from its normal activities.
The woodpecker was relaxing on an exposed tree in the sunlight on a beautiful late autumn day. The red color of its head was even more spectacular than usual. Amazingly the woodpecker did not fly away immediately when I began to take some photos and actually changed its position a few times, almost like it was posing for me.
I hope that I have not oversaturated my readers with woodpecker shots, but I just love the attitude and look of these beautiful birds, especially the spectacular Red-headed Woodpecker.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, Melanerpes carolinus, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on December 12, 2015| 6 Comments »
Several years ago when I first started taking photos of birds, I remember how excited I was when I photographed a woodpecker that looked like this one. It had red on its head, so surely, I thought, it was a Red-headed Woodpecker. Oh, how naive I was back then about the complexities of identifying birds.
Sometimes with age comes a bit of wisdom. I am now pretty confident in identifying this bird as a Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus), though I must confess that I have never seen a single spot of red on the belly of a Red-bellied Woodpecker.
Like the Red-headed Woodpecker that I featured yesterday, the Red-bellied Woodpecker gathers and stores acorns for later use. As one of my readers pointed out in a comment on a previous posting, it is a mystery how the woodpecker remembers where it has stored the acorns and how it keeps other creatures from stealing its ‘treasures.”
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, gathering acorns, Huntley Meadows Park, Melanerpes erythrocephalus, Red-headed Woodpecker, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on December 11, 2015| 8 Comments »
As winter approaches, squirrels are not the only creatures gathering and storing acorns. Red-headed woodpeckers (Melanerpes erythrocephalus) also cache acorns in crevices of trees for consumption at a later point in time. Recently these beautiful birds seemed really busy and I was happy to capture some photos of one of them in action.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Cardinalis cardinalis, Huntley Meadows Park, male Northern Cardinal, Northern cardinal, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on December 10, 2015| 4 Comments »
When you don’t have a bird in the hand, sometimes you just have to make do with a bird in the bush.
Despite their bright color, male Northern Cardinals (Cardinalis cardinalis) are surprisingly hard to photograph. They like to dive into the deepest part of the bushes and forage there most of the time. Sometimes it sounds like they are taunting me.
This cardinal showed his face in the for a moment and I was able to get a mostly unobstructed shot of this beautiful bird, whose bright red color always reminds me of Christmas.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Humor, Nature, Photography, tagged Alexandria VA, Anas carolinensis, Anas clypeata, Canon 50D, Green-winged teal, Huntley Meadows Park, Northern Shoveler, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on December 9, 2015| 9 Comments »
“You don’t look at all like your profile photo,” said one flamboyant duck to the other during the awkward first moments of a meet-up arranged through the internet dating site quack.com. Duck dating has moved into the 21st century.
For the record, the duck on the left is a male Green-winged Teal (Anas carolinensis) and the one on the right a male Northern Shoveler (Anas clypeata).
I welcome other suggestions for a caption for this photo as well as general wise quacks.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 